Lithuania is among the top ten countries with the most open markets for services trade

Created: 2018.02.05
/ Updated: 2018.02.08 11:10

At the end of January, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) launched the new update of the OECD Services Trade Restrictiveness Index (STRI), which contains information on regulatory changes that affect trade in services in 44 countries. According to the document, Lithuania is among the top regulatory performers. The top ten countries with the most open markets for services trade are Latvia, Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands, Australia, Lithuania, Denmark, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the Czech Republic.

The STRI offers an overview of global trends in services trade regulations and facilitates analysis into the effects that such regulations have on trade in services. This evidence-based tool allows to assess reform options, benchmark them relative to global best practices, and assess their impact; helps identify restrictions that most impede trade; and is a source of regulatory transparency for businesses seeking to enter foreign markets. The OECD experts have drawn attention to Lithuania’s achievements: the country no longer applies a labour market test for contractual service suppliers staying in the country for less than 12 months; the market for fixed telephony has been deregulated; and foreign professionals are no longer required to take a local exam to become a licensed auditor.

“The OECD assessment confirms that Lithuania has created an effective services markets regulatory environment, promoting the competitiveness, creating preconditions for new investments and for the rise in services exports. We hope Lithuania will be invited to become a member of this organization during the Ministerial Council Meeting in late May 2018 ,” said the Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius.

For more information about the OECD Services Trade Restrictiveness Index: Policy trends up to 2018, please read here.